PENDLE Liberal Democrats are to call on the new Housing Minister to visit the area as part of a campaign to keep council estates under local authority control.

The ruling administration's housing spokesman, Coun David Clegg, is to move a motion at the council's annual meeting next Thursday calling on the Minister to visit Pendle and on the new Labour Government to change government policy to stop the penalties which Pendle faces for not selling its housing stock.

Coun Clegg said that at present, Pendle was being starved of funds to invest in its council homes. The council was told by the Tories that things would get worse in the future unless it took steps to persuade its tenants to back a sell-off to a housing association, a private landlord or a housing company. Surveys showed the vast majority of tenants wanted to stay with the council.

"We hope that the new government will have a different policy but up to now we do not know what that policy will be," he added. "On behalf of our tenants, we are taking early action to ask for a change of mind."

Former housing committee chairman Coun David Whipp said he had little faith in Labour because it had pledged not to spend a penny more on housing than the Tories.

"But we hope they will at least withdraw the penalties which the Tories had imposed and let Pendle have enough resources to keep the council housing stock in good order," he added.

Coun Clegg's motion calls on the Government "to allow Pendle to have access to sufficient funds to maintain an adequate level of investment in both the public and private housing stock of the borough."

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